Monday, September 21, 2015

HYDROS: Drivers with Speedway connections...

Fageol Safety Coach. (Image source:
onlycarsimages.com)

Yeah, hang in there Y'all, as I'm trying to wrap up
this year's Hydroplanes coverage, for which this story apparently got washed
down by other Nofendersville Ducks, Chickens, Farm Implements; Err motorboats;
Hya!

As previously regaled this August during
Seafair weekend, the name Fageol finally lit-up my collective Radar, especially
in deference to Lou Fageol, pilot of one of Seattle's most cherished Hulls, the
Slo Mo Shun's! Which I plan on visiting once again at our wonderful
(Thunderboats') Hydroplane And Raceboat Museum in Kent, WA this fall.

Having learned about the Fageol Twin Coach
Specials at Mother Speedway 'Wayback in 'Twenty-oh-Eight, it's taken a long-while
to Sus' this all out, since I'd missed the obvious connection to Seattle and
Unlimited Hydroplane racing, amongst other things...

Naturally, A-L-L of this Hydroplane talk started
my mind Ah-wonderin' - how many boat drivers had contested the Indy 500? For
which I could only discern two, one of whom I'd actually written a brief
obituary for at the beginning of 2013.

Obviously the mist
from the Roostertails' is growing larger! As Walther's WICKEDPedia' page claims
he wasone of eight Unlimited
Driversto qualify for the Indianapolis
500, but of course I cannot find the others; URGH!

As surely Y'all recall Salt Walther, right?
For which whenever I hear his name I immediately conjure up the nameSwedeSavage,which
has to be one of the "Coolest" racing driver names ever, right! And
now has a Saleen "Signature" edition 570 Challengernamed after him - which apparently was released
last year.

David Salt' Walther made his Indianapolis 500
debut in 1972 in the Dayton Disc Brakes P.J. Colt/Foyt, failing to complete a
lap due to Magneto failure. Before that ill-fated year of '73. Arguably the
Speedway's worst!

As Walther would recover from his massive burn
injuries - returning to the Speedway one year later and ultimately contest the
Indianapolis 500 seven times with a best result of ninth place in 1976, his
lone Top-10 finish - having only completed two race distances.

But like I've said before, somehow I missed
the fact that Walther was also an Unlimited Hydroplane pilot. Not to mention
the fact he had a brother, George Skip' Walther III who was also an Unlimiteds'
driver befallen by racing tragedy.

The other name wasn't so obvious to Mwah,
even whilst scribblin' my epic Blue Crown Spark Plug Saga tome, where I learned
about that unique twin-engine racing car that apparently got in three times Indy
500 winner Mauri Rose's way!

Fageol Motors was established in 1916 in Oakland,
California, producing motor trucks, farm equipment and busses. And although two
exquisite luxury cars were built, this portion of manufacturing quickly ceased
due to the car's Hall Scott Aeroplane engines being procured for World War I
airplane production instead.

Early on, the company thrived with its motor
trucks, along with the very unique spiked wheel farm tractors produced under a
Hamilton patent.

But these tractors were fairly expensive and
therefore Fageol sold off this portion of business in 1923 in order to make
room for production of trucks and busses instead.

The company fell upon hard times in the late
1920's and never recovered from the Great Depression, slipping into Bankruptcy
and finally being sold to Tacoma, Washington's Timber Entrepreneur Theodore Alfred Peterman, whom
reputedly sought some form of modern transportation
to haul timber to awaiting lumber mills.

In 1939 T.A. Peterman established Peterbilt
Trucks, originally produced at the Fageol Truck & Motor Company in Oakland,
CA before becoming another Pacific Northwest legend, which ultimately became
part of Semi-trucks Conglomerate PACCAR, which owns such brands as DAF, Dynacraft,

Kennworth, Leyland and Peterbilt, along with DAF
Brasil & Paccar Australia producing these B-I-G' RIGS Worldwide. But that's
another story in itself!

The Fageol Twin Coach Bus Company was an
offshoot of the original Fageol Motors when brothers William and Frank Fageol
left the original Fageol Automotive concern in 1927. forming their own motor
coach company - which revolutionized the original Fageol Safety Coach bus.

Frank's son Lou became a boat racer in the
early 1930's, and commissionedhis first
Hull, the So Long, before having the So Long Jr. propelled by a (seven liter)
bus engine, presumablyfrom the Fageol
Coach Works in 1941, as Lou would become the president of Twin Coaches after
World War II, taking over from his father.

Fageol Indy 500 Entries

Year FPSPNo.DriverCar NameChassis/Engine

194129219Mel
HansenFageolMiller-Ford/Offy

194633210Paul RussoFageol Twin CoachFageol
Twin Offy's

194816736R-Bill CantrellFageol Twin CoachStevens/Fageol

Obviously, with Lou's penchant for racing and
having taken over the reins of the family business, I can only presume his
branching out into the arena of racing at Mother Speedway was an attempt to promote
the Fageol Twin Coach brand, since the Brickyard was arguably the most
prestigious motor race at the time - following World War II.

Fageol's first driver Mel Hansen was an
interesting character. Known as the "Firecracker Kid" for his penchant
'O throwing and lighting firecrackers upon unsuspecting victims!

Hansen won multiple Midget Car championships
- along with making six starts at Indianapolis where his best finish was eighth
in 1940. He also won the 1948 Atlanta AAA Champ Car race before becoming a
Paraplegic in '49 due to a racing accident and died in 1963 due to his injury.

I vaguely know Paul Russo's name from my Blue
Crown Spark Plug Saga, as he was part of what was known as the "Chicago
Gang," a veritable Rat Pack 'O USAC Midget Cardrivers comprising of Tony Bettenhausen, Sr,
Duke Nalon, Emil
Andres, Cowboy O'Rourke, Jimmy Snider and Wally
Zale.

Russo won the 1938 AAA Eastern Midget Car
crown andcontested the Champ Car trail
between 1940-62, scoring three victories along with making 14-starts in the
Indy 500. His best "solo" finish was fourth placein 1957, while finishing runner-up in '55
when co-driving with Bettenhausen.

Paul's brother Joe and nephew Eddie also
raced at Mother Speedway, while Russo drove that Fageol's Twin Coach Special
twin Offenhauser engine oddity in '46. Starting from the middle of Row-1, before
hitting the wall on lap-16, retiring Dead last in 33rd. The stricken vehicle
being left On-track - which Mauri Rose would inadvertently hit 24-laps later!